sycophantic
Britishadjective
Other Word Forms
Explanation
The adjective sycophantic is perfect for describing someone who uses flattery to get what they want. The sycophantic guy in your biology class might compliment the professor on her fabulous shoes as he hands in his lab report. Someone who's sycophantic goes overboard with compliments, usually to gain some kind of advantage. You see sycophantic behavior in Hollywood all the time, from red carpet interviews pouring flattery on movie stars to fawning autograph seekers. Sycophantic comes from the Greek word sykophantes, "one who shows the fig," a vulgar gesture of the time. The reference is to hypocritical Greeks behind the scenes who pretended to flatter while encouraging others to "show the fig."
Vocabulary lists containing sycophantic
Grendel
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Scythe
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"Self-Reliance" by Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It doesn’t have to be that way, if we use smart tactics to push back on AI’s sycophantic tendencies.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 21, 2026
In the months that Rae was getting to know Barry, OpenAI was facing criticism for having created a model that was too sycophantic.
From BBC • Feb. 13, 2026
The company rolled back to a March version of 4o, but the model remained sycophantic.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 10, 2026
And so there's a sort of sycophantic element of basically sort of talking to yourself in a way, like to a mirror.
From BBC • Jan. 30, 2026
Sure, I love the idea of our family’s archenemies turning into sycophantic suck-ups, but when the strange actually materializes into reality, it definitely leaves you reeling.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
